The Rev Dr Peter Mullen is a priest of the Church of England and former Rector of St Michael, Cornhill and St Sepulchre-without-Newgate in the City of London. He has written for many publications including the Wall Street Journal.

Marx hated a free press. So do our MPs, it seems

We should all be afraid, but certainly not surprised, to learn that only 80 MPs have put their names to a letter insisting there should be no statutory control of the press. Naturally we should expect very few Labour MPs to support a free press for their darling and guru Herr Marx said that the mass media is pernicious because it is controlled by a small number of rich men who conceal the truth that economic forces control all social and political life.

But surely we should hope for better from the Liberals when their brightest luminary John Stuart Mill declared:

“The peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is, that it is robbing the human race, posterity as well as the existing generation, those who dissent from the opinion even more than those who hold it. If the opinion is right, they are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth; if wrong, they lose what is almost as great a benefit, the clearer perception and livelier impression of truth, produced by its collision with error.”

We may be sorry then that more Labour party people and Liberal Democrats do not believe in the liberty which they preach about endlessly, but we are disgusted that so few Conservatives wrote to denounce the policy of statutory press control. Why so few to take the stand for freedom?

The plain and unpleasant answer is because politicians crave power and detest and resist anything which threatens to limit that power. The best defence of our liberty – read Mill again and read John Milton – is a free press.

Of course, the self-interested MPs claim that some curbs on the press are desirable in order to avoid editors and journalists opening windows into private souls which ought to remain closed. They will cite such examples as the McCann family and the disgraceful episode involving Lord McAlpine. Let us suppose, then, that MPs wish to limit the power of the press out of their high altruism and desire to protect the innocent. I admit this supposition demands from us an almost supernatural ability to suspend our disbelief.

Because all authoritarian governments exercise extreme control of the press. They would be foolish not to, for they understand the power of the press. Along with the rest of Europe, Britain is in for a very tough time economically. If you think the supposed austerity of the last few years is as bad as it gets, well you ain’t seen nuffin’ yet. It would be massively convenient for our politicians to be able to silence protest against the draconian measures they will wish to take by an appeal to “the national interest.”

And once a statute limiting the press is on the books, it will be nigh impossible to repeal. Remember this: all those myriad “human rights” promised us by our talkatively sanctimonious politicians are not worth a penny without the right of the press to remain free.